The increase mirrors Sappi’s notice from just over a week ago, which announced an identical, immediate increase for the same grades, but only applied to export markets outside Europe, the US and Canada.

In a statement on the latest increase, Sappi said: “Decreasing profitability combined with further cost increases makes a 5%-8% price increase in all Sappi’s European markets unavoidable.

“Your local sales office representative will contact you with further market related details.”

The increase on reels and sheets will come into force on 14 April.

One industry source said: "With the recent mill strikes in Finland and the pressure on costs, it was only a matter of time before the mills had to move.

“It will be interesting to see how the other mill groups react in the next couple of weeks."

In terms of UK impact, the affected Sappi products are stocked by a number of merchants, including Antalis, Elliott Baxter and Premier.

Antalis sells Sappi's Claro range of uncoated papers, Elliott Baxter stocks the coated GalerieArt grades and the uncoated Horizon Offset range, a white-label grade that is manufactured by Sappi, while Premier Paper stocks the coated Sappi Magno family.